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Topic: entrance size (Read 2618 times)

I have noticed watching JPs videos that bees tend to have small entrances. The entrance to a standard langstroth Hive is huge. I guess someone started this size entrance for a reason. Does anyone out there know why? I guess people must have thought bigger entrances would make a hive more productive. Michael Bush shows shims used as entrances. I have been using them for my entrances they work well and look easier for the bees to defend. David

I use a 3/4" beespace on my bottom boards instead of 3/8" and I've been cutting down the entrance size to 2" wide in the center of the bottom landing for the past couple of years. I'm like you, I think the bees like a smaller entrance, but that's just my thinking, nothing scientific about it. I do use 3/4" holes drilled into front face of the upper boxes on some, bees seem to like that. This year I used some bottom boards turned upside down as a top board and the bees seemed to like that a lot, so I may do more of those next year.

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Sitting in the shade, drinking lemon aid.Enjoying the breeze while counting the bees.

When the bees choose they choose a small entrance. But they can't really change it much (unless you have bees that don't have the propolis bred out of them). It seems a bit more efficient to have it larger in a heavy flow. But I have seen hives that I didn't remove or open the reducer and they seem to do as well or better than the ones with larger openings. Anything taller than 3/8" is harder to defend against wax moths and yellow jackets.

I usually keep my entrances reduced to around 2 inches or so unless there is a robbing situation then I go for 1 inch or so.Now on my 6 frame hives I build them 10 1/2 inches deep with a 1 1/4 inch hole for an entrance.The bottom of the entrance is 1/2 inch off the bottom.I got that design from Georgia Bees for small hive beetle control.The bees don't seem to mind the small entrance and they can defend it better.

I am thinking about redesigning my bottom boards to have an entrance about 1 bee tall and 8 bees wide. I have been using top entrances using roofing shims this year already and the bees seem to prefer those entrances.

I also prefer small entrances and believe my bees do too. They 'may' very well be inefficient during heavy flows, they do get quite crowded.

My bottoms are left open at roughly 3.5" with mouse guards on year round. My tops are a 2.5" notched inner cover placed notch side down and reduced to a ha;f inch for winter with bottoms covered over with hay, allowing for minimal entry/exit for bees and breezes :).

Logged

"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

A few month back there was an article in Bee Culture about entrance size, location and queen excluders.Somebody took 18 hives and split them into three groups, all were 2 standard brood boxes and two supers. First group of six; Full bottom opening and queen excluder on top of the brood, of the brood box. Second group had a 3/4" dia hole opening at the top, queen excluder above the brood.The third had a 3/4" round hole at the top, no queen excluder, no inner cover

All three sets were in the same general location. The first set produced about 35 lbs/hive, the second group produced about 45lb/hive and the third group produced close to 100lbs/hive.

Rev. Langstroth lived in a time when there was no such thing as central air. All the houses had porches, lots of windows and doors at porch level, an attic and a pitched roof. So when he designed his bee houses, he put in a porch with lots of entranceway (for ventilation) down at the porch level and an attic floor over the whole thing. About the only things he got right were movable frames and bee space. (Pretty important things too). But bees don't like porches with big entrances and queens don't need or want excluders. If you insist on having them in your boxes then you are going to pay a price in reduced honey production an probably reduced longevity. RegardsJoe

jredburn; is there any chance you could give a few more details on the article? Maybe what issue of the magazine, or better yet the name of the researcher? I have felt for some time that the wide deep entrances were not as beneficial as some think. Last year I scaled them down to 3/4 x 3 inches for the summer, and 3/8 x 1 for the winter with a 5/8" hole at the top for ventilation during the winter. I tried a couple at 3/8 x 3" this summer, and have been thinking I might go to that for all of them, though haven't made up my mind yet.

My bottom boards are of a migratory pattern before pallets and the entrance is the width of the box and between 1/4 and 5/16" deep. Most of the year I have most of that blocked off. It slows down mice enough that the bees get there if they try to enlarge it to get in. When I wrap for the winter, I close it completely and the bees use a bored hole below the handhold in the upper brood box

A few month back there was an article in Bee Culture about entrance size, location and queen excluders.Somebody took 18 hives and split them into three groups, all were 2 standard brood boxes and two supers. First group of six; Full bottom opening and queen excluder on top of the brood, of the brood box. Second group had a 3/4" dia hole opening at the top, queen excluder above the brood.The third had a 3/4" round hole at the top, no queen excluder, no inner cover

All three sets were in the same general location. The first set produced about 35 lbs/hive, the second group produced about 45lb/hive and the third group produced close to 100lbs/hive.

Rev. Langstroth lived in a time when there was no such thing as central air. All the houses had porches, lots of windows and doors at porch level, an attic and a pitched roof. So when he designed his bee houses, he put in a porch with lots of entranceway (for ventilation) down at the porch level and an attic floor over the whole thing. About the only things he got right were movable frames and bee space. (Pretty important things too). But bees don't like porches with big entrances and queens don't need or want excluders. If you insist on having them in your boxes then you are going to pay a price in reduced honey production an probably reduced longevity. RegardsJoe

that's an awfully small sample. if it were 180 hives or 1800 hives it would be a lot more credible.